If you fly a lot, you might be part of a frequent flyer program.
Air travel
Joining a loyalty program is a popular way to get perks for prioritizing one airline over another when you fly. The more you fly with one airline, the more frequent flyer miles you can get. But, it might not be as easy as you think. A new report states that some major U.S. airlines are being investigated for potential deceptive practices in their loyalty programs.
According to Reuters, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is looking into the frequent flyer and loyalty programs of major U.S. airlines after “troubling reports” of unfair and deceptive practices came to light.
Orlando International Airport
Following some concerns raised in Congress, the USDOT has been meeting with passenger airlines to discuss these programs, including “transparency practices when booking award tickets, transferability of miles and notice given before making changes.”
Traveling soon?
The department is also looking into the devaluation of frequent flyer miles over time, which makes it harder for customers to book award tickets. According to Senate Judiciary Committee chair Dick Durbin and Republican Senator Roger Marshal, “airlines are changing point systems in ways that are unfair to consumers, including by devaluing points, meaning it takes more points than initially marketed to achieve the promised rewards.”
Orlando International Airport
Dubin and Marshall co-sponsored a bill this year that would address “outrageous” fees charged by Visa and Mastercard and ensure that large credit card-issuing banks offer a choice of networks over which a transaction may be processed. Major airlines heavily lobbied against the legislation, saying it would threaten their ability to offer rewards credit cards altogether.
Southwest Airlines at the Orlando Airport
This all comes at a time when frequent flyer programs are booming. Delta, which had more than 100 million frequent flyer members in 2020, added a record 8.5 million members in 2022.
Airplane
We’ll keep an eye out for any updates on the matter, so stay tuned to DFB for more!
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‘We are from the government and are here to help’….. Just like everything else our federal government does, if Congress gets involved in frequent flyer programs it will cost consumers more to travel and they will get even less. Don’t they have anything more important to do like deal with our porous border, two wars, $33+ trillion in debt, the blue city crime explosion, nonfunctional schools, skyrocketing drug deaths, etc., etc. Nope, these clowns are more concerned about our frequent flyer points and perks. Sent them all home.
When did consumer protection become a bad thing? The TSA has no control over international conflict, border protection, debt, crime, education, drugs, etc. etc. It handles, you know, transportation and its safety. Looking out for consumers’ best interests is what it is supposed to be doing. Sometimes bias against the party and/or the person heading up the TSA clouds opinions. I appreciate the TSA looking into the craziness that is air travel today and working to make sure the consumer isn’t lost in the shuffle.